The number of new dog products and apps is staggering, and it seems like everybody wants to make a buck selling to dog lovers. Let the buyer beware! So much of what’s available may not deliver on its promises. Recently, I heard about the Pavlov Dog Monitor, an app that I think has issues.

Basically, the Pavlov Dog Monitor is designed to allow people to monitor and train their dogs remotely with the use of smart phones, Facebook, and an iPad. The guardian records two videos. One is a correction video with a message such as “Bad dog, no barking” and the other is a video saying, “Good dog.” The first is played to the dog when the dog barks and the second is supposed to be the “treat” for a period of quietness. One concern is that simple praise is unlikely to be enough to reinforce a dog for being quiet, especially if the dog has not been conditioned to enjoy the praise. Another is that telling a dog to stop barking is generally completely ineffective. A final concern is that the instructions tell you to place your iPad near your dog. I predict that not all the iPads will survive being left alone and in reach of a dog.

According to the company that developed the app, “Episodes of repeated barking, destructive activities, or intense behaviors are a thing of the past,” which I think is totally unrealistic. They say that their product will succeed at dealing with barking problems and separation anxiety where toys to prevent boredom, nanny cams, and shock collars have failed.

They suggest that it be used to treat separation anxiety, which is worrisome, as that suggests that they have little understanding of how serious a condition separation anxiety is and that it is not synonymous with problem barking and destructive chewing. The goals of the app are to change bad behavior and to use social media to build a bond between the dog and the person, but it’s awfully hard to build a bond without actually being together.

These statements don’t sound like they are coming from people who really know dogs, and in fact, the company specializes in developing hardware and software products. This is their first dog product. The name of the app should immediately make anyone suspicious about the level of canine expertise behind it. The app attempts to make use of operant conditioning and has nothing to do with the classical conditioning, which is the type of learning Pavlov discovered and for which he became famous.

As I said, there are a lot of dog apps out there. Which ones would you recommend?